This topic is for discussion of map #10350: the Inverted Pyramid
(https://knucklecracker.com/creeperworld3/queryMaps.php?query=thumbnailid&id=10350)
Author: Martin Gronsdal
Size: 97x97
Desc:
This was fun! It was also not as difficult as I expected. I'm so used to the usual trickery that I assumed the solution had to be more complicated than it was.
What trickery?
😉
I don't know how you guys did it. Fastest time is 6 minutes, but the spores drop straight through my shields and killed my base about 3 minutes. I had about half of the board cleared, so I tried again and sped up my play - but the spores hit harder and killed me in a minute and a half. If the shields won't stop spores from dropping through, how do you survive for 6 minutes?
Ok - got it
Spoiler
Denser shielding - a lot denser
Thanks for playing!
Well I really want to like this but....
The shields do nothing, no matter how dense you place them. Cannot see what the point of the shields is. So its unclear to me how to proceed.
Quote from: AstraNine on November 06, 2022, 10:53:02 AMWell I really want to like this but....
The shields do nothing, no matter how dense you place them. Cannot see what the point of the shields is. So its unclear to me how to proceed.
You need 24 shields only, 12 for the PZ and 12 "spare". You have to switch off the shields that got hit and move them away from the PZ and place a healthy and charged shield to the same PZ.
Its entirely possible to complete the map with only the 12 PZ shields.
It is, but I think you can be unlucky and have spores target the same area twice and that's potentially bye bye.
Thanks for the explanation but.....
My problem is not the shields themselves (apart from they're leaky!). The spores target all my power in the centre and the CN. I literally have all my shields intact but Im still dead. And I've tried shielding the centre as well but it makes little difference.
Perhaps I will come back to this later but thanks anyway.
spores never target the CN, just other buildings, like power.
shields ON the PZ (the circle) cover much larger area than on normal land, thus they cover the middle as well.
when one shield takes a hit, switch it off and move it away from the PZ, and replace it with a healthy/fully charged shield that is switched on.
My advice would be to play on slow speed and pause all of the time. The letter N on the keyboard moves time by... a fraction of a second, that helps in progressing very slowly.
Spores dont target the CN so build smart..
Build nothing on on inner 2 rings and on the 3rd ring between the PZ,s only build as close to the outer edge as possible so that if you do get an unlucky hit that goes straight through the shields they will push the creep outwards.
Tech is cheap so upgrade your power supplies ASAP so you dont need as many reactors,upgrade packet speed and build speed to the point where you can rebuild and repower a shield between spore shot's.
Reactors are 1 cost so if any shots do land rebuild is negligible.
The whole trick to this lvl is preventing any creep from landing in the middle or getting there,beyond that theres several ways to attack.
You can actually also put power on the PZs and just build a zillion shields. That's what I did on my win.
nice idea for a map. took me a few tries... was a lot of fun! thanks for making the map
Thanks for playing!
Quote from: Dave! on November 07, 2022, 09:28:38 PMSpores dont target the CN so build smart..
Build nothing on on inner 2 rings and on the 3rd ring between the PZ,s only build as close to the outer edge as possible so that if you do get an unlucky hit that goes straight through the shields they will push the creep outwards.
Tech is cheap so upgrade your power supplies ASAP so you dont need as many reactors,upgrade packet speed and build speed to the point where you can rebuild and repower a shield between spore shot's.
Reactors are 1 cost so if any shots do land rebuild is negligible.
The whole trick to this lvl is preventing any creep from landing in the middle or getting there,beyond that theres several ways to attack.
Hi Dave... What kind of packet speed worked for you to beat 6 minutes??? WOW!!!
I built up 51 Packet speed... But am having too many last second nullifier failures... I am starting to think I spent too much Forge Aether building 63 energy storage... and too much time/energy on building guppies to supply the Shields... because my shields disappear like snowflakes long before they run out of ammo... Fear I am missing something basic about how to attack uphill using only shields...
Spoiler
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2894896394
I would rather learn how to use Shields right... than just plugging away hoping to get lucky...
Did you use
Spoiler
singularity
?
Quote from: Martin Gronsdal on November 29, 2022, 12:35:24 AMDid you use Spoiler
singularity
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I just assumed that the Martin... who's puzzles I've been slowly working through... would disconnect the sxxxxxxxxxx button... so I didn't check... Having a teenaged daughter in the 1990s... I recall words of wisdom from an old American TV show's Buffy the Vampire Slayer's little sister... "Assume makes an Ass of "u" & "me"...".
My first move today was going to restart and deconstruct the map... Just to check the core for a potential hidden prebuilt fleet of guppies... Just in case Martin was getting really tricky. Paranoia feeds paranoia...
Next was to check and see if last night's inspiration to attack the 4 corners first makes sense... Thinking was that spore towers just might be easier to swamp than those walls of vanilla emitters...
Next plan was to restart and push forging Faster Packet Speed... And build all of the reactors ASAP on 3 sides... and the fleet of guppies in the center ring... then swamp the wall with masses of Shields.
OR...
Spoiler
I guess now... I'd better just keep going and forget about the clock... Forge faster Packet speeds... AND... learn how to use singularity without swamping the map... until my nullifier gets lucky...
Glad I checked the Forum first....
Thank You Martin...
Quote from: AstraNine on November 07, 2022, 10:21:36 AMThanks for the explanation but.....
My problem is not the shields themselves (apart from they're leaky!). The spores target all my power in the centre and the CN. I literally have all my shields intact but Im still dead. And I've tried shielding the centre as well but it makes little difference.
Perhaps I will come back to this later but thanks anyway.
Spoiler
This map is too fast for me even at 1X speed... I have to do everything by tapping, or hold/release the "N" key... Leakage??? Vanilla Shields are too weak to survive multiple hits... Recommend "V" Keying all non-PZ Shields... so the PZ Shields take ALL the hits... PZ shields can withstand a hit or two with no leakage... Recommend frequent PZ shields checks for damage... "V" key any damaged PZ Shield and swap it for one of the healthy vanilla spares... "V" keying not only protects the vanilla Shields, it saves a LOT of energy and shields build up their energy levels a lot faster...
anyway, good luck!
Quote from: Martin Gronsdal on November 29, 2022, 01:12:36 PManyway, good luck!
Hi Martin...
After 6 months of beating my head against the wall... I finally climbed back on that frisky #10350 stallion of yours... and THIS TIME it did not buck me off... Even that single game on the #10686 Test/Training Bed helped me learn how to place and time the singularity blasts... Getting excited... and losing focus on vulnerable shields and the next critical singularity blast almost did me in several times... Wooooaha feels great!!!! Thank you!!!
Starting layout
Spoiler
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2985087136
Midgame singularity is working... but oh those guppy builds...
Spoiler
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2985084868
At last - At last - Joy at last!!!
Spoiler
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2985089127
Great job!
Quote from: Martin Gronsdal on June 05, 2023, 03:45:17 AMGreat job!
Thank you Martin... Coming from one of the greats... it means a lot...